On Sunday, the Kansas City Chiefs and the Philadelphia Eagles will go against each other in the 59th Super Bowl. This game is more anticipated than the usual because if the Chiefs win they will be the first team to win the championship three years in a row.
For those outside of the football realm that appear at watch parties just for the ads or halftime show, the Kansas City Chiefs have been on a roll. The team’s iconic duo of quarterback Patrick Mahomes and tight end Travis Kelce have charged forward into sports legacy.
Kelce might be more famous for his relationship with Taylor Swift, who is a regular at her partner’s games (which has sparked controversy because of her constant use of her private jets). Meanwhile, Mahomes has signed on to dozens of commercials and advertisements. He has his own brand of Oakley’s, shoes with Adidas, promoted Coors Light and worked with Disney. It’d be a shock if an ad during the Super Bowl didn’t have Mahomes.
It seems impossible to stop the duo, and the Chiefs as a whole. Although there is no guarantee of who will win, NFL’s own website gave the Chiefs a 53.3 percent-win probability as of Feb. 2.
However, there is a difference between the skill of the players and the pride of the fans. And Philadelphia Eagles fans are prouder of their franchise than most other football enthusiasts.
After the Eagles beat the Washington Commanders on Jan. 26, fans poured into the streets of Philly to celebrate. The 55-to-23-point victory guaranteed that the Eagles would head to the Super Bowl. That same day, the Chiefs won their final game against the Buffalo Bills, but only by 3 points.
Philadelphia’s early celebration went viral across social media. It was a reminder of the team’s 2018 Super Bowl win. After the victor was called, tens of thousands of fans stormed the streets of Philly and celebrated. Videos flooded the internet with the destruction of property that fans were causing.
Aside from the teams and their history, there is plenty of hype around the halftime show. Kendrick Lamar announced he would be headlining the halftime show in a video released on Instagram.
This came with its own set of controversy. The Super Bowl will be taking place in New Orleans, so many suspected that New Orleans Rap Legend Lil Wayne would be performing at the halftime show and were disappointed when it was announced that Lamar would be instead.
Along with that, Kendrick Lamar had been fought with Canadian R&B singer Drake over the summer in what had become the most famous rap battle to date. The feud has a complicated history, but practically ended after Lamar released a diss track titled: Not Like Us. The song now has over a billion streams on Spotify.
Since the battle, Lamar has had nothing but tremendous commercial success. He had a pop-up concert in Los Angles with tens of thousands of attendees, a chart-topping album that released in November, and obviously the halftime show.
Yet, even in his announcement video about hosting the show, many speculate he subtly insulted Drake. “You know there’s only one opportunity to win the championship. No round 2s.”. This came shortly after Drake said he was ready for a “second round.”
Additionally, many Brookdale students are excited that Jersey’s own SZA will be joining Lamar as a special guest on the halftime stage.
Whether you’re a sports fan or a rap lover, this will be a big Super Bowl. The game will start at 6:30 p.m., and you watch it on FOX or stream it.
